Executive Committee: Message from the Chair

Monique D. Jewett-Brewster

As I touched on in my message in Issue 1, Volume 2019 of the Business Law News (BLN), I am delighted to utilize my Chair addresses during this California Lawyers Association (CLA) year to highlight each of the major methods by which the Business Law Section (BLS) strives to provide practical knowledge and legal developments of interest to its business lawyer members. A synopsis of the Programs offered by the BLS is the perfect accompaniment to the BLN’s Annual Review of 2018 Legal Developments, as the Section actively provides its cutting-edge legal updates not only through publications like this informative Annual Review, but through its programming as well.

As a part of the CLA, the BLS shares its mission and pledge to offer "free and no cost MCLE" to California lawyers. To that end, the Section offers a variety of live programming all over the state. For instance, in February 2019, the Agribusiness Committee hosted a successful and informative agricultural issues update by the legal staff of the California Farm Bureau Federation, highlighting key legal issues affecting the agricultural sector, including agricultural labor, wildfire issues, the future of utilities, water quality, endangered species, and legislation. Speakers also discussed the impact of Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, its potential impacts on California energy, including hydropower projects, and community choice aggregation as an alternative to power generation in local communities.

The BLS Financial Institutions Committee, the San Francisco Bank Attorneys Association, and the Financial Women of San Francisco recently co-hosted their annual collaborative program held at the Federal Reserve Bank in San Francisco, this year covering the "Financial Services Industry in the Crossroads: Legal, Regulatory and Technology Developments and Disruptors." There, a panel of distinguished financial services experts discussed legal, regulatory, and technology developments impacting the financial services industry, fintech charters, cybersecurity challenges, new developments in payments, outlook on regulatory tailoring, and more.